


Obligation and Truth

by PiningTsukkiEnthusiast



Series: UshiTen Week 2020 [3]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Arranged Marriage, Alternate Universe - Royalty, Arranged Marriage, But all of that is behind the scenes, First Kiss, First Meetings, Fluff, Gay Ushijima Wakatoshi, I cried writing this ok don't talk to me, Implied Sexual Content, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Implied/Referenced Transphobia, M/M, Prince Tendou Satori, Prince Ushijima Wakatoshi, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Trans Tendou Satori, UshiTen Week 2020, Ushiten Week, ftm tendou satori, like i mean, we are focusing on: these men who are in love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-26
Updated: 2020-08-26
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:54:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,116
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26124571
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PiningTsukkiEnthusiast/pseuds/PiningTsukkiEnthusiast
Summary: Day Three:Arranged Marriage|Secret Talent|Royalty AUWakatoshi is the only heir to the throne. He is the queen’s first son and only child, so there is no one else to leave the kingdom to.Content/Trigger Warnings:There is some deadnaming and misgendering, plus some very strongly implied homophobia and transphobia. 99% of it happens "off-screen", but I just wanted to put that forward so it doesn't catch you off guard.<3
Relationships: Tendou Satori/Ushijima Wakatoshi
Series: UshiTen Week 2020 [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1894027
Comments: 14
Kudos: 134
Collections: Ushiten Week 2020





	Obligation and Truth

**Author's Note:**

> I literally went Wild writing this fic I did it in under 24 hours like Not To Flex but I think that makes me a beast ok it was so Fun and so Soft

Wakatoshi is the only heir to the throne. He is the queen’s first son and only child, so there is no one else to leave the kingdom to.

The kingdom, over the last generations, has been passed from matriarch to matriarch. Wakatoshi will be the first male heir in a long time. He will inherit the throne when he is twenty-one, and once he has taken a wife.

There is just one problem.

Wakatoshi doesn’t _want_ to take a wife. He realizes this when he is thirteen, and he tells his father so. Prince Takashi understands; he always seems to understand.

“I will attempt to talk your mother out of finding you someone to marry. There are still eight years before you are crowned king. That’s plenty of time to change the rules.”

He smiles, warm and reassuring, and Wakatoshi naïvely believes that it will work.

When Wakatoshi is fourteen, his parents are divorced. His mother promises to leave him alone about the subject of marriage, though her disapproval is impossible to miss. Wakatoshi simply doesn’t understand. He prefers the _company_ of men, and it sounds stupid to marry someone only to produce an heir.

Wakatoshi has seen firsthand what it looks like to marry someone you don’t love.

On his eighteenth birthday, there is a royal ball to introduce him to the kingdom officially as the crown prince. Everyone who is of any importance in the kingdom is there. There is entertainment, a feast, dancing. Really, it’s a bit much.

There is a line of eligible young women for Wakatoshi to dance with, from ages sixteen to twenty-two. It’s not subtle in the least.

Wakatoshi does his duty. He dances with each of the women, and he’s perfectly polite to each of them. But he’s uninterested, and each of them don’t appear to want to be there either. There are a few who seem charmed by his blunt and direct manner, blushing and giggling. They’re the younger ones. Women who are really still girls and should be around someone their own age. Not being auctioned off to the soon-to-be-king by their families.

One woman never makes it into the line, despite being of the right age. It makes Wakatoshi curious because his mother isn’t insisting and she looks wholly uninterested.

But it’s one less obligatory dance, so Wakatoshi doesn’t complain. He just continues on to the last of the women.

“You have to find a wife, Wakatoshi,” his mother insists. It’s the night before his twentieth birthday. “If you don’t, then you will not be able to take the throne at twenty-one.”

“I think that we may be the only monarchy that retires instead of dying,” Wakatoshi says. He is not interested in having this conversation for the umpteenth time. “I will not get married just so that I can take the throne.”

“You will also need to produce an heir,” his mother continues. It’s as if he never spoke at all. “You cannot do that on your own, you know!”

“Mother, I prefer _men_ ,” he says firmly. “I will not marry some poor woman for the sake of an _heir_. It is not fair to her.”

“Do you think that I wanted to marry your father?”

“I know for a fact that you did not.”

She purses her lips, but her posture never changes. It’s the posture of a woman who had to fight for the respect of a kingdom, who had to turn down proposals from men who only wanted her for her power. Wakatoshi _does_ understand. But he’s frustrated, and he’s hurt.

“I thought that you would want something better for your son.”

Her expression becomes pained. “You know that I want what’s best for you–”

“You want what you believe is best for me,” Wakatoshi corrects. He stands from the table. “You do not care about what I want. In the last seven years, you have made this abundantly clear.”

“Wakatoshi.”

He walks away. It’s the sort of thing that you don’t do, no matter who you are. You don’t walk away from the monarch.

But the only witnesses are the servants and his grandmother. Wakatoshi doesn’t foresee any of them taking the show of disrespect too seriously.

He arrives in his bedchambers and removes his crown. He never asked for any of this.

His manservant, Shirabu Kenjirou, sits on a chair nearby, reading a book. “Your Highness, I didn’t expect you back so soon.” Shirabu sets down the book and stands at the ready. “Are you turning in so early?”

“No. You may return to your book, Kenjirou. I apologize for interrupting.”

Shirabu shakes his head. “Your Highness, you don’t have to apologize.”

Wakatoshi sighs and goes to sit on his bed. He knows what that conversation meant. He’s going to be set up with a woman, whether he likes it or not. The element of choice is being removed. His mother has found someone for him to marry, and he’s going to have to marry her no matter what.

He reaches for a pen and some paper. In times like these, it helps to write to his closest friend and advisor, Reon. Even just a few words of comfort would help Wakatoshi right now.

> _To my dearest friend, Crown Prince Wakatoshi:_
> 
> _I have heard rumors in the kingdom, but I wasn’t sure if it were true. Her Majesty, the Queen, has been said to be in contact with the King and Queen from the neighboring kingdom. They have an oldest son who is Crown Prince, but they also have a daughter who is younger– who is your age._
> 
> _From the sound of it, this will be the woman that your mother and grandmother will be arranging your marriage with. I have seen her, and while she is not the most stunning woman, she is clever, kind, and of good humor. She will make you a lovely queen._
> 
> _I offer my deepest and sincerest condolences that the seven-year plea for a change in the laws has gone unanswered. You should not be forced to marry a woman when you know that you will only ever love a man. I only hope that the Princess Satomi is, if nothing else, a dear companion and friend to you throughout the years._
> 
> _Regardless of this turn of events, I will remain by your side as your faithful friend, servant, and advisor. I know that you may expect the same of the rest of the Shiratorizawa Court._
> 
> _Yours,_
> 
> _Oohira Reon._

It is a week after Wakatoshi’s twentieth birthday when he catches official news that the Princess of the neighboring kingdom has arrived. She is accompanied only by her older brother, a royal guard, and her lady-in-waiting. From the whispers that Wakatoshi catches in the palace halls, she is just as reluctant to be there as he is.

Somehow, that puts him at ease. Wakatoshi thinks it would be more painful to try and go into an unwilling marriage if it were of unequal feelings. At least here, neither of them wants this.

(He hates that women almost always receive this fate. It’s on his list of the top five laws and traditions to challenge and overturn when he is crowned the king.)

Wakatoshi’s mother insists that he wears his finest robes to meet with her. He finds it to be a ridiculous overstatement, but he does understand the nuances of diplomacy well enough to know that this isn’t about looking handsome. To marry another royal, from another kingdom, is little more than a business transaction. Therefore, his mother is simply putting her best foot forward.

Reon is at the palace today as well; he will be one of the two chaperones on Wakatoshi’s side to oversee the meeting. The kingdoms have agreed for them to meet without blood relations, but they have equally insisted on having _someone_ in the room with the pair as they meet for the first time. Wakatoshi isn’t sure why, but that’s not a question that he feels like asking.

He walks to the room, Reon and Shirabu five steps behind him the entire way. As they get closer, he hears… laughter?

Yes. There is laughter, and someone is singing something absurd. Or trying to, at least, as they seem to keep breaking off into giggles every time that they get a few lines in. Wakatoshi is stunned into a pause, and Reon and Shirabu stumble to a stop, trying not to step closer than they’re supposed to.

“Sorry,” he says to them, and he holds his hand up to stop the pair from telling him not to apologize.

Wakatoshi begins to walk again, knocking twice before opening the door.

The room goes quiet before the second knock, and once the door is open, all three from the other kingdom are standing. The guard has his head bowed respectfully, and the lady-in-waiting curtsies. Only the Princess remains in an unchanged posture, head high and shoulders back. Most would be offended; Wakatoshi is the highest-ranking person in the room. But Wakatoshi is not _most_.

He recognizes that this is a service to his family, more than to hers. They do not need power, there’s no war or feud that this alliance would end. So, Wakatoshi bows before her instead, a full ninety degrees. He trusts that Reon and Shirabu follow his example.

“Crown Prince Ushijima Wakatoshi,” he introduces himself. “I am pleased to be of your acquaintance.”

A brief silence falls over the room, and then the Princess laughs. It’s brash, deeper than Wakatoshi expected. He glances up, trying to decipher what is so funny.

“You don’t have to pretend like you’re glad to meet me,” she says, and she pulls the clip from her hair, allowing it to fall. It’s red, familiar…

She was the woman at the ball who never danced with him.

Wakatoshi stands upright once more and walks to take a seat at the table. He has prepared himself to lay everything out, to be fully honest before entering into this obligatory matrimony.

“You’re right,” he begins.

The Princess sits across from him and nods. He takes this as a cue to continue.

“I have no interest in getting married. I find it absurd that I am required to be married before my twenty-first birthday, just so that I may take the throne. I do not want to marry someone I neither know nor love.” He folds his hands over the table and waits for her response.

“I am going to be honest with you,” the Princess says, leaning across the table. “And then, you will tell your mother. And she will forbid this union. I am her last hope, so perhaps you will, somehow, acquire an extension.”

Wakatoshi’s brows draw together. He’s not sure what this is supposed to mean; is there really _anything_ that can make his mother turn away the only woman left that could marry him?

“I am a trans man. My parents keep trying to push me towards marriage, as if it will fix me and turn me into a perfect young woman, but the fact is that I am and always will be a man. I like men, but most men don’t want a wife who will instead be their husband. So, you tell your mother that I am trans and gay, and she will have to reject me as a candidate for marriage.”

Wakatoshi sits in stunned silence, soaking in all of this information. He came into this, expecting a Princess who was simply being ushered off to the neighboring kingdom for a more solid alliance and to produce an heir. He was expecting a woman who fit the vague description that Reon had given him.

Instead, he receives a man. A man, who seems to be in a very similar position as Wakatoshi. The obligation, the reluctance, the erasure of identity…

“Your Highness,” Wakatoshi begins. “I– the reason that I have no interest in taking a wife is because… I like _men_.”

The man across from him nods slowly, lips pulling up into a wide grin. “So…if we got married…?”

“You could be and wear whatever you want. Your true self, always,” Wakatoshi assures him. “I would have let you be yourself regardless, but this…”

“You don’t have to marry a woman, and I don’t have to marry a man who tries to make me into a woman,” he concludes.

Wakatoshi nods. “If you will have me as a husband, I see no reason not to have you as mine.”

“As yours?”

“As my husband.”

That must have been the exact response that he sought because his face is overwhelmed with joy. He’s bright, and the part that wasn’t clicking before does now. Wakatoshi understands where he’s different– he was always a man.

“Tendou Sato _ri_ ,” he introduces himself at last. “My guard, Semi Eita, and my lady-in-waiting, Shirofuku Yukie.”

“My manservant, Shirabu Kenjirou, and my advisor and friend, Oohira Reon,” Wakatoshi introduces. “It’s a pleasure to formally meet you, _Prince_ Satori.”

“You as well, Prince Wakatoshi.”

Their families are each so mutually ecstatic about the change in plans that they don’t seem to care how the agreement was reached. Wakatoshi and Satori sit across from one another at dinner, more than a couple of private looks shared as Satori’s brother and Wakatoshi’s mother discuss wedding arrangements.

“We will have a ball this weekend to announce the engagement to the kingdoms!” the Queen decides. “You must write to your parents so that they receive the good news as well! I believe that this wedding could be done within the month!”

Wakatoshi isn’t sure how he feels about getting married so soon. But he knows that this is practically fate. He won’t pass this opportunity by.

On the evening of the ball, Wakatoshi stands at the top of the stairs. He holds out his arm, waiting for Satori to join him so that he may escort his husband-to-be down to the floor. Satori arrives not much later, dressed formal and elegant. He takes Wakatoshi’s arm.

“I promise you that our wedding day is the last time you will be forced to wear women’s clothing,” Wakatoshi vows.

“You’re kind, Wakatoshi-kun,” Satori replies. “I don’t completely mind wearing feminine clothing. It’s more that I wish I were perceived as a man in a dress than a woman dressed _normal_ or whatever.”

Wakatoshi smiles at him warmly. “Well, then I suppose the point is that you will always be able to do whatever you please.”

“And as will you.”

They face forward, heads held high, and Wakatoshi escorts Satori down the steps. It’s an odd sense of pride, boiling in his chest. He feels as if he’s won something, like he’s getting away with a clever scheme, even if this is only a coincidence of circumstance.

It is too soon to be in love with Satori, but Wakatoshi knows beyond a doubt that he will grow to love him. As a friend, a companion. As a husband.

_A husband._

Wakatoshi is giddy about it, knowing that in the privacy of their home, he will be able to admit, out loud, that he has a husband. He only wishes his father were here as well, to be in on this treasured secret.

“Are you smiling?” Satori asks quietly. “I think that this is the first time that I have ever seen you smile.”

Wakatoshi hums and evaluates how his face feels. “Yes, I suppose that I am.”

Satori laughs under his breath. “Good. You deserve reasons to be happy, Wakatoshi-kun.”

“As do you,” Wakatoshi says, glancing at him. “I cannot promise much, but I will try to ensure that you are happy.”

“You really are too kind,” Satori replies. His cheeks are red, and he’s smiling as well.

Wakatoshi can’t help but think about the letter from Reon, weeks ago. Reon described Satori as _not particularly stunning_ , and Wakatoshi cannot imagine for the life of him why. Satori is easily the most handsome man in the room.

_And Wakatoshi will get to marry him._

Someone announces their names, and Wakatoshi feels his stomach churn at the use of Satori’s birth name. Satori, however, seems unfazed by it. He’s probably used to it, after so many years, but it just makes Wakatoshi’s heart hurt more.

_I will always use his real name,_ he vows silently. _He should never feel like his identity is being ignored or overruled._

Satori is introduced to the Shiratorizawa nobility as Wakatoshi’s fiancé, and he charms everyone that he meets. That is a part of Reon’s letter that was certainly true: clever, kind, and of good humor. Even Washijou laughs when Satori tells a story about his brother.

He brings life to the ballroom in a way which Wakatoshi has never seen before.

After everyone has been introduced, Wakatoshi leads Satori to their thrones, where they sit to watch over the others enjoy the party.

“You are very good with the guests,” Wakatoshi notes. “They all adore you, and you only spoke a few minutes with each of them.”

“I have a way with nobility; I _am_ royalty, after all.” Satori smiles at him. “Though, I do have a secret to it. Would you like to know what it is?”

Wakatoshi motions for him to continue.

“I’m very good at reading people. Body language, tone, expressions, all of that. People will betray their hearts the moment they step into a room. You simply have to know what you’re looking for. And then, you can charm the pants off of anyone.”

“I am impressed,” Wakatoshi breathes, glancing once more at the crowd. “Did you read me, when we first met?”

“You are the easiest person I’ve ever read,” Satori replies. “You were the highest-ranking person in the room, but you bowed to me when I did not bow to you. You are polite and humble. Despite the way our kingdoms think, you have respect for everyone– women, servants, commoners.”

“Then why did you still try to get me to back out of our arrangement?” he asks.

“Because knowing you are a good person does not mean that you would want to marry _me_ , in all my honest self.”

“I am glad that you told me,” Wakatoshi says. “And I am glad that this seems to be working in our favor.”

“Just five weeks until the wedding. Are you ready, Wakatoshi-kun?”

The days leading up to the wedding are hectic. While Satori would love to stay in Shiratorizawa, he must go home frequently to be with his family. But every week, there are a couple of days that he stays in Wakatoshi’s palace, and they get to know one another.

This always features their “chaperones”, of course.

On Satori’s third visit, the six of them play cards in the garden. Wakatoshi isn’t fully sure _what_ card game this is supposed to be, only that Satori is almost definitely using his people-reading skills to cheat at it. And that Wakatoshi is horrible at it.

“So, Wakatoshi-kun, how did you know that you liked men?” Satori asks, winning another hand.

Semi opens his mouth as if to scold Satori, but Wakatoshi holds a hand up to stop him.

“I was thirteen, and I simply knew,” he says, because as far as he remembers, that’s what happened.

“He saw one of the palace guards in the hot spring, and he blushed so hard that we thought he had a fever,” Reon corrects, smiling slyly.

“I do not recall that.” (He does.)

“Honestly, that Her Majesty would ever even suggest that Wakatoshi would be happily married to a woman is–”

“Oohira-san, I advise you not to speak ill of the Queen,” Shirabu interrupts.

“Of course, of course.” Reon sighs and leans back on his hands. “But I hope that the two of you will make one another very happy, Satori-kun. After twenty years of your identities being swept under the rug, it is what you both deserve.”

“Thank you, Oohira-kun,” Satori says, smiling brightly. “I’m sure we will be happy.”

“Obviously,” Yukie mumbles from where she’s shuffling the deck for another round. “Wakatoshi-kun is a _hunk_ , and he’s _so_ –”

“Yukie!” Satori squeaks out, waving his hands in front of his face. “Shush!”

Wakatoshi looks between the two, curious, but he doesn’t ask. He doesn’t want to embarrass Satori further. Semi whispers something to Reon, and the pair snickers while looking between the two of them.

“I don’t see how you can all show so much disrespect for those above you, to their faces,” Shirabu sighs, shaking his head.

“How much disrespect to you show for your superiors behind their backs, Shirabu-kun?” Semi asks though a laugh.

“I don’t know, you will just have to ask His Highness how I speak about you, Semi-san,” Shirabu replies evenly.

Semi’s laughter fades into a sneer, but he turns his attention to Yukie as she deals out the cards.

“Wakatoshi-kun, I’m charging you with finding me a wife,” she says solemnly, “otherwise I will be doomed to spend the rest of my life surrounded by you idiot men.”

Wakatoshi laughs, warm and full. “I will do my best, Shirofuku-chan.”

“Thank you kindly, Your Highness.”

On Satori’s fourth visit, the final visit that will only be a _visit_ , Wakatoshi takes him to see the house where they will live, away from the palace.

“Because there is still another ten months until I take the throne, this is where we will be staying,” he explains.

Shirabu opens the door for the rest to go inside.

“There are six bedrooms– one for each of us,” Wakatoshi begins. It has already been established that Semi and Yukie will be moving with Satori into the kingdom. “I believe that one of them is intended to be a guest room, however given the circumstances, it works out perfectly.”

“Such a gentleman, Wakatoshi-kun,” Satori says, touching Wakatoshi’s arm lightly. “So, who is staying in which room?”

Wakatoshi leads the way up the stairs, where all the sleeping quarters are kept.

“Down the hall to the right are where Yukie-chan and Kenjirou will sleep,” he says, gesturing in that direction. “The left hall is where Reon and Semi-kun will sleep. Then, in the main hall, there is the master bedroom and the guest bedroom. Satori, you may take the master, and I will take the guest bedroom.”

“A guest in your own castle?” Satori asks, surprised. “You’re the Crown Prince; it won’t do to have someone else in the master bedroom.”

“Some may feel that way, but I feel that my future husband deserves only the best accommodations,” Wakatoshi counters.

Satori’s cheeks go pink. “Sometimes, I think you do these things just for an excuse to call me your future husband, Wakatoshi.”

“I am very pleased to have a husband at all, and more so that it will be you,” Wakatoshi replies, blunt and honest.

Satori looks as though he might have a heart attack. Semi and Reon share a look, and Yukie and Shirabu pretend like they don’t hear anything that’s going on.

“There is a bathroom in each hall,” Wakatoshi continues. “Two in the main hall, each en-suite to the bedroom.”

He turns to lead them back downstairs to explore the common areas.

“Here is the sitting room… the dining room is through this way, attached to the kitchen. Currently, I am undecided on which staff to bring into the house, on account of them likely coming across your truth, Satori, so I will leave that trust in your hands.”

He opens the door into the garden, bringing the group outside. “And here is the garden. A place to sit, path to walk through.”

Finally, he leads them to the area with a privacy fence. “Through here is the hot spring. It’s attached to a balcony off the main hall, however, all of you are permitted to use it.”

“I like it,” Satori says, hands on his hips.

“We will be staying here until I am crowned king next year,” Wakatoshi says, “and then after that, we will move into the main palace. My mother and grandmother will move in here.”

“That’s a lot of moving,” Semi sighs. “Your family doesn’t believe in living together like most royals?”

“It is traditional for newlyweds to have a five-year privacy period, for…” Wakatoshi’s face warms, and he shakes his head. “But don’t worry about that.”

Satori laughs. “I didn’t expect you to be so shy.”

“It isn’t as if I expect that sort of thing from you.”

“And what do you propose you’re going to do about an heir, Wakatoshi-kun?”

Wakatoshi huffs quietly. “We don’t need an heir,” he says. “Just because it would be the most useful for the direct royal line doesn’t mean that there’s no one else. Lord Tanaka Ryuunosuke’s wife is expecting her firstborn soon, who would be the next eligible heir.”

“You’ve thought about this,” Satori says, eyes wide.

“He’s been thinking about it since he was thirteen and making his plea to not have to take a wife,” Reon tells him. “It was always going to be the child of one of the Tanaka siblings, and Lady Saeko has not found a suitor she appreciates.”

“Interesting.” Satori looks at Wakatoshi curiously. “You never struck me as one to be so vehemently opposed to the rules.”

“I watched my parents’ mutual misery born out of their sense of duty and obligation,” Wakatoshi explains. “They were divorced when I was fourteen, and the years leading up to then were not happy ones. I did not want that same fate, if I could at all help it.”

“Divorce exists for royals here?” Yukie asks. “Man, in our kingdom, if you get a bad match, you just have to wait for someone to die.”

“Divorce was not for royals until my parents,” Wakatoshi says simply. “I suppose that they have no issue changing the rules, when it is of direct benefit to themselves.”

“Oh.” Satori rests his hand on Wakatoshi’s arm, a silent comfort. This is the world that they both grew up in, after all. He understands, probably more than anyone.

“Wakatoshi, you look so happy every time Satomi comes to visit,” his mother muses over dinner. “You must really care for her.”

“She will be a good friend, and for this reason, I am not opposed to our union,” he lies easily.

It shouldn’t come so easily. Wakatoshi has never been a fan of lies. But this isn’t just his life anymore; this is Satori’s secret that he will treasure and protect. Only Satori will decide who knows.

“I admit, I was reluctant when her parents proposed the match to me,” the queen continues. “I did want to find you someone I believed you could grow to love. I never found their daughter to be the most beautiful. But I really think that–”

“Mother, I would ask that you not speak ill of my fiancé.”

Her eyes widen, just a fraction. “You already do.”

“What?”

“You already love her.”

Given that the marriage itself is finalized in a couple of signatures on some papers, the wedding itself is little more than a theatrical display for the rest of the kingdom. Wakatoshi doesn’t care for it much, himself, but this is the last day of obligation to his mother. Afterwards, his only obligation will be to his husband and to his kingdom.

Shirabu is dressing him when there’s a knock on the bedchamber’s door. Wakatoshi glances to the door, then back to Shirabu.

“Who is it?” Wakatoshi calls.

“A guest who somehow was allowed into the castle,” calls back the voice of a familiar man.

Wakatoshi’s eyes widen, and he rushes to the door before Shirabu even has the chance to react and open it. His father stands there, dressed formally for the wedding. He’s older, of course he is, but it’s strange. The mere six-year difference feels like an eternity that had passed.

“Hello, Wakatoshi.”

Wakatoshi beams at him – at least, it’s Wakatoshi’s version of beaming – and hugs his father.

“So, my son, tell me of the woman who convinced you that marriage was an alright idea.”

The words and his tone are joking and light, but Wakatoshi senses concern in his father’s eyes. He knows that he’s vowed never to share Satori’s secret, so he does not know how to proceed.

“It is a long story,” Wakatoshi says. “I will let my fiancé tell you.”

This gets a curious look in reply, but Wakatoshi just moves back to where he was being dressed.

“Well, I suppose I can wait, in that case.” His father sits on a nearby chair to wait.

The wedding ceremony passes in a blur.

It is beyond Wakatoshi, how anyone could look at Satori and not see a man, a handsome, and beautiful man. Even in the feminine wedding attire, Wakatoshi could never mistake his husband-to-be for anything but what he truly is.

Their eyes meet, and it’s a private look, even with a thousand eyes on them. The feeling that they both know what no one else knows, that they’re going to be happy for reasons that no one else knows.

It’s nothing long or drawn out. They have no personal vows, on account of being no more than strangers who have gotten acquainted in the last month. But Wakatoshi means it with every _I do_ , because whatever this love is, that is growing in his chest, he will do his best to take care of Satori, to make his life as good as possible. To cherish him, and to respect him.

The reception is short but grand. Wakatoshi shares a first dance with Satori, with whispered jokes and shared laughs. The kingdom seems to react to it as if they’re living a fairytale, but Wakatoshi and Satori know.

This is the closest they’ve ever been allowed to be, and Satori continues to be the most radiant man in the room.

“Wakatoshi, you’re staring,” Satori mumbles. “Don’t tell me that you are still in disbelief over our great luck.”

“No,” Wakatoshi assures him, continuing to sway with the music. “I am simply appreciating how lovely my _husband_ is. If that’s alright.”

Satori flushes, but he smiles at Wakatoshi. “Yes. That’s alright.”

Walking up the stairs of their home, side by side, is the first time that Satori and Wakatoshi are ever allowed to be alone. The first of the rest of their life.

“No more rules,” Wakatoshi realizes. “Our family no longer are our obligation.”

Satori hums. “This is true.”

“It feels like freedom. I always feared that any arranged marriage would feel like being bound to expectations and obligations for the rest of my life.”

They reach the hall, which parts into their separate rooms.

“Wakatoshi,” Satori says, more serious than Wakatoshi has ever heard him. “I am looking forward to sharing a life with you.”

Wakatoshi smiles warmly. “As am I.”

They stand at their respective doors. Wakatoshi bows slightly. “Goodnight, my husband.”

Satori laughs and bows as well. He takes Wakatoshi’s hand to press a kiss to his knuckles. “Goodnight, my husband.”

It takes only a week for Satori to pick out his preferred and trusted staff for the house.

They managed rather well over the week, but that is perhaps due to Yukie’s and Shirabu’s experience as servants. They are well-fed, the house is kept, and it is a peaceful first week of married life.

Satori’s first act of freedom is to have Yukie cut his hair. When he comes downstairs after his bath, Wakatoshi feels as if his heart stops.

“How does it look?” Satori asks. His posture is confident, but his voice is nervous.

“Very good,” Wakatoshi promises him. “It suits you.”

“Thank you, Wakatoshi-kun.”

They share many quiet moments over the first month. Meals together, reading in the sitting room. Tea in the garden. It’s domestic, and it’s peaceful.

This is the life that Wakatoshi never thought that he would have.

Every evening ends with parting ways into their separate rooms. Always with a _goodnight, my husband_ , and always with a kiss on Wakatoshi’s hand. It’s as if Satori is courting him, but Wakatoshi is afraid to hope for such.

He’s even more afraid of the knowledge that he is already in love with Satori.

“I’ve never been in love before,” Wakatoshi says to Reon. “I do not know what to do, or how to act. Should I tell him?”

Reon gives him an understanding but amused look. “Wakatoshi, he’s already married you. Yes, I think that you should tell your _husband_ that you are in love with him.”

“It was an arranged marriage,” Wakatoshi points out.

“Which you _both_ had plans to walk out of, until you became acquainted,” Reon counters. “He is so in love with you too. What more does he need to do?”

“I don’t want him to feel pressured, or to feel like I expect anything from him.”

“He knows that you don’t,” Reon promises. “And he is a strong man. Your confession of love is not going to _pressure_ him into anything.”

“I have found a happiness and a love that I thought that I would be deprived of,” Wakatoshi says quietly. “And if I mess this up, if I lose this, there will never be another opportunity like this again.”

Reon squeezes Wakatoshi’s shoulder in comfort. “As your oldest friend and trusted advisor, my professional opinion is that you should tell your husband that you love him.”

Wakatoshi sighs and looks out at the garden. “Perhaps you are right.”

That evening, Wakatoshi asks Satori to accompany him for a walk in the garden.

“The garden after sunset? How romantic, Wakatoshi-kun,” Satori laughs. He stands from his chair and sets down his book. “Of course I will.”

“Thank you.” Wakatoshi bows. Formality is the only thing he has to cover his nerves.

They walk outside together, and once the door is closed, Satori takes Wakatoshi’s arm. The stars are bright, and the sounds of nighttime surround them. It’s peaceful, comforting. Satori is beautiful in the moonlight.

“You’re nervous,” Satori says plainly, as they begin their walk. “What has you so bothered?”

“Nothing bad,” Wakatoshi assures him, voice steady. “I just wanted to spend time with my husband and friend.”

Satori raises an eyebrow, but he says nothing.

Wakatoshi leads them through, and the weight of Satori’s hand on his arm brings him comfort. He thinks about the past month, the moments that they’ve shared. He wonders if maybe Reon is right, maybe Satori feels the same.

“Satori,” he says, the words feeling stuck in his throat.

“Yes?”

Wakatoshi stops and moves to stand in front of Satori. He takes both of Satori’s hands, and Satori gives him a curious look. Wakatoshi takes a deep breath, trying to steady his nerves.

“I am in love with you.” Once the words come free, it’s as if a weight is lifted off of Wakatoshi’s shoulders. He feels lighter, just having the information shared to the one man whom it matters most.

Satori stares, silent for a brief moment, before he grins, bright and overjoyed. “Oh, you are, are you?”

“Yes,” Wakatoshi confirms. “I have always hoped that I would find the good luck to meet a man who I would love and cherish, as a friend and as a partner. You came into my life like a miracle, but that isn’t the only reason that I fell in love with you.”

Satori nods, eyes shining with unshed tears.

“You are handsome, compassionate, and clever. I look forward to having you at my side as an advisor and a confidante. You bring life and light into every room you enter, and it is my great honor and privilege to often share those rooms with you. I have never known someone so charming or so intuitive. Everything about you draws my heart to you, and in the last two months, I have fallen hopelessly in love with you.”

“Wakatoshi-kun, you sound as though you’re working up to ask me to marry you,” Satori says with a fond laugh. “I am already your husband.”

“I know,” Wakatoshi says, ears warm. “But I’m not asking you to just be my husband on paper. I would like you to be my husband in heart as well.”

Satori laughs again and steps closer. “How could you not know?” he asks, shaking his head. “I have been your husband in heart and soul since the moment we said _I do_.”

Wakatoshi looks at him in shock, processing the information. _Satori loves me too_. This is beyond anything that he would have dared to hope for.

Satori steps closer once again, tilting his head towards Wakatoshi’s. “May I kiss you, then? As your husband, who loves you?”

Wakatoshi gives a wobbly smile in response and nods. He’s nearly shaking with nerves, but when Satori closes the gap, all of that melts away into just, _warmth_.

Warmth, and love, and hope.

At the end of the night, they stand at the doorways of their separate rooms, as they have every day since their marriage.

“Goodnight, my husband,” Wakatoshi says, bowing as he always does.

Satori doesn’t look fazed in the slightest that Wakatoshi will still sleep separately for now. He only bows and takes Wakatoshi’s hand.

“Goodnight, my husband.” The goodnight kiss is placed just beside Wakatoshi’s wedding ring, and it feels intentional, symbolic.

_Satori loves me too._

Evening walks in the garden become a new staple in their daily routine.

Luckily, so does holding hands, and sharing private kisses. Wakatoshi is a fan of the kisses, just as he’s a fan of the time that he gets to spend beside Satori.

Every night, the kisses get longer and greater in number. It makes him feel breathless in the best kind of way. Satori’s lips fit on his perfectly, and when their tongues meet, it’s as if they’re creating a language together. Wakatoshi tells Satori as much, and Satori just giggles.

But every night, they part ways to their separate rooms. Wakatoshi isn’t quite ready for the rest, and Satori is patient. They are navigating this new and beautiful thing together.

They have been married three months, taking walks for two. Kisses grow heated, hands tangle in hair, fingers grip at fabric. It’s almost unbearable, attempting to stay chaste. Not that there’s truly any reason to. Wakatoshi and Satori are married in every other sense.

Still, it’s nerve-wracking for Wakatoshi. There are a multitude of reasons why, but mostly, it’s just the fact that he is in love with Satori, and he wants to make this enjoyable for them both.

He has been reading, learning, so that he’s prepared. Satori has been on T for the last three months. Wakatoshi wants to understand what this means for his body, and how Wakatoshi can best take care of him. His greatest fear is to hurt his husband– he’d never forgive himself.

They stand now at their separate doorways, both more than a little worked up from the kisses of the evening. Wakatoshi begins to bow to say goodnight, but Satori rushes to meet his face, lips pressed against his.

Wakatoshi makes a surprised noise, but his arms wrap around Satori’s waist naturally. The kiss is passionate but brief.

“Wakatoshi,” Satori whispers when he pulls away. “We don’t have to do anything tonight. Just share a bed with me, your husband.”

Wakatoshi’s entire body and soul feels warm, and he nods. How could he turn down a request such as that?

Over that week, Wakatoshi begins to transition into living in Satori’s room.

They sleep in the same bed, arms wrapped around each other as they share warmth. Waking up to Satori’s face becomes yet another favorite of married life, for Wakatoshi. Early mornings bring slow, lazy kisses, and Wakatoshi cannot believe it, even after all this time.

He is in love. He gets to be in love.

And Satori is in love with him right back.

“We should begin our day’s tasks,” Wakatoshi says as the sunlight bleeds in through the window.

“No,” Satori mumbles, rolling on top of him to kiss his jaw and neck. “I’m still spending time with my husband. The rest of the kingdom can wait.”

Wakatoshi melts at the words and the kisses, but he knows that they must.

“There is a festival tomorrow, and we are expected to attend. There are certain preparations that we must make beforehand.”

“Wakatoshi,” Satori sighs, sitting up atop Wakatoshi’s lap. “The festival is tomorrow. All of our preparations could be done in the span of a few hours this afternoon.”

“You’ve been reading up on our duties, I see.”

“I have. I _am_ your advisor and a Prince, aren’t I?”

“Yes.” Wakatoshi runs a hand up Satori’s side. “I suppose that you’re right. Are you still tired?”

Satori shakes his head.

“Then, what are you so insistent on staying in bed for?”

Satori looks down at him, like he can’t believe Wakatoshi is asking such a thing.

“You really weren’t lying when you said that you’ve never been with anyone,” he sighs fondly. “Wakatoshi-kun. You are my husband. I am your husband. You seem nervous, and so you may tell me no. But please know that you are not pressuring me, if you want to explore where the _two become one_.”

Wakatoshi’s face and neck heat up as he gazes upon his husband. “I don’t want to hurt you by accident.”

“I won’t let you; you just have to trust me.”

Wakatoshi nods slowly. “I do trust you.”

“Then come here. Know me in the only ways that you’ve yet to.”

Wakatoshi sits up, slowly so that he doesn’t knock Satori over, and cups his cheek in his hand. “You’re sure?” he asks.

“I could have devoured you on our wedding night, Wakatoshi. I am _so_ sure.”

The festival preparations are quickly completed, as Satori anticipated. Wakatoshi is impressed with how much they got done.

“I don’t think that we’ve ever been so efficient,” he muses.

“It’s because we’re not pent up anymore,” Satori claims. That’s definitely untrue, but Wakatoshi laughs regardless.

“Do you feel ready for tomorrow?” he asks gently.

“Yes.” Satori smiles at him. “I am ready and honored to be officially presented as your _husband_ , Wakatoshi. I do not want to hide my entire identity. It will only get harder when you are king, and it will become some sort of scandal if anyone but myself is the one to leak it. I have been ready to be known and acknowledged as a man for my entire life. I am ready.”

Wakatoshi kisses Satori’s cheek. “Then I am ready to stand beside you.”

**Author's Note:**

> Validate me in the comments Please orz Also I'm sorry I really Avoided that sexy scene because I didn't want to go Super Long but trust that I will, eventually, give that.
> 
> Follow me on [Twitter](https://www.twitter.com/lovingyachi) and scream with me about Haikyuu!! and other shit


End file.
